Reason Writers Around Town: Matt Welch on Bloggingheads.tv Talking Democratic Depression With Michelle Goldberg

At Bloggingheads, Reason Editor in Chief Matt Welch probes the depths of post-Coakley Democratic despair with The American Prospect's Michelle Goldberg, discussing health care reform, State of the Union fantasies, and whether Tea Parties are a manifestation of white Christian nationalism. Fifty-two minutes, with individual segments carved out on the Bloggingheads page.

Comments

[JImmy Jojo]

Sounds to me like this dude might just be a tad bit full of himself.

jess
http://www.online-privacy.int.tc

[Kyle Jordan]

Bad bot, bad! Go to the corner!

[heller]

Amazing. He got ALL that just from seeing Welch's picture.

[SugarFree]

There's a painting in Matt's attic whose subject keeps getting older.

[SugarFree]

We may be cynical and mean, but at least we aren't stupid.

claymisher wrote on 01/26/2010 at 02:27 AM
...
In America, right now, unless you're 65 you do not have insurance.

Really? I'm not 65 and I have insurance. Riddle me that one, doofus.

[Isaac Bartram]

SF, the idiot comentator is correct to this extent (from the link he furnished*):

That's not insurance; that's employer-subsidized health care for the duration of your employment.

Of course Medicare isn't really insurance either; it's government-subsidized health care for as long as the politicians find it useful to vote for it.

*I don't think it's his work, but I can't be bothered to really look further.

[SugarFree]

OK, OK. I bet he's still an idiot, though.

[Isaac Bartram]

Aren't they all? 🙂

[Warren]

It's actually a good point. A guy I used to work with that had chronic health problems clued me into some of the corrupt workings of employer provided health care.

You don't have insurance. If you had insurance, you'd have a policy that states what is and isn't covered and how much the provider has to pay etc. However, with employer health plans, if you are unfortunate enough to contract a long term illness, your employer can do a cost benefit analysis on how much value you're delivering, and if you come up short, you'll find that the care you need isn't covered under your plan.

[ev]

I don't like her politics....but The 'Chelle is cutecute.

[ev]

Jesus. She is on the verge of tears the ENTIRE time. I think this is fucking hilarious.

[JW]

Yes, yes she is. GodDAMN this predilection of mine for Jewish girls!

Are Jewish libertarians as rare as Jewish cowboys?

[Another Phil]

Jewish libertarian here (well, atheist really, but from a Jewish family).

[heller]

Same. And well versed in the Jewish Dark Arts as well...

[John C. Randolph]

Is that chick smoking crack? She actually said that the health care bill is unpopular because we don't know what's in it?

It's unpopular because the people know that it's an unconstitutional gift to the politicians and their corporate paymasters, at our expense.

-jcr

[ev]

The possession of ball arrow is shocking to the left. I'd have interrupted her so many times by now.

I think the hardest thing about arguing from a libertarian perspective is how calm we have to be. We're outliers and have to weave our way in with reason rather than emotional hysterics. If we lash out at all we're considered even more fringe.

The hypocrisy of it all is beautifully/painfully ironic.

My libertarian thoughts have helped me mature in this regard, trying to always show to The Enemy/audience that I am the one on an even keel rather than the Sensible Speaker.

[ev]

Jesus evan. It's the time of possession arrow...

[Matt Welch]

I really like "possession of ball arrow," and intend to make it a rallying cry. For what, I know not yet.

[ev]

I will use it for the "nut up or shut up" sentiment in the future, for what that's worth.

And for all my typos: it's the early hours of Wednesday morning in Korea and my drunken ass has to get ready to teach in a few hours.

[Kyle Jordan]

This entire statement is full of nothing but win.

[capitol l]

Toe the blue lion when he gets possession of the ball arrow will use it to smite the enemies of freedom.

And, so it is written...

[John C. Randolph]

I think the hardest thing about arguing from a libertarian perspective is how calm we have to be.

Says who? I'm perfectly willing to call a spade a spade, and I'll use colorful language to do so.

-jcr

[Isaac Bartram]

Me, I'll get to the heart of the matter and call it a godamn shovel!

[ev]

I'm a 22-year-old libertarian fairly fresh out of IU, surrounded by socialist/vegan friends. Trying to be Patton, I have to strategically bite at the crust of their stale (get it?!) arguments to try and reach them.

(I know it's not my duty to "reach" them...but I like intellectually winning debates.)

Fighting vitriol with vitriol only helps them seclude away into their caves.

I get into a lot of political debates and try to model my approach on those of the Cool Whip smooth Friedman.

[D-FENS]

Racist!

[db]

Those relative camera angles are sexist.

[Joe M]

Matt, I don't know how you put up with so much nonsense, but I salute your efforts.

[BakedPenguin]

To be fair, from her perspective, she was putting up with Welch's libertarian nonsense.

[BakedPenguin]

I would quibble with the "Obama is a socialist" line. Like most of our politicians, he is a socialist (not a communist). So was Bush - there was a reason Chavez claimed "Bush is now to the left of me". Bush essentially nationalized banking, and Obama nationalized most of the auto industry and tried his damnedest to nationalize health care. All told, that's about 20% of the economy. At what point is it okay to notice and call out these things?

[bagoh20]

I predict a lot of cosmetic surgery is in Michelle's future. She must spend a lot of time with mirrors.

[bagoh20]

Michelle has no idea what the Tea Party movement is. Absolutely clueless about a movement that is more popular than either political party and she knows nothing. Why is she a resource for any open minded curious person?

[Tman]

The left has been ignoring and insulting the tea party at their own peril. I say them let them continue to act like a spoiled eight year old who had his toys taken away instead of adults of a serious political party.

The more they act like this the more they implode. It's farking AWESOME to watch.

I'm from Boston originally and I'm STILL in awe of what happened in the Brown race. I don't think people realize how big of a deal that was.

[Sean]

Since when is social security reform not popular? I know it's unpopular with the elderly vampires sucking outsize payments out of it, but everyone I know in my age bracket (20-30) is for it. Probably because they realize they're never going to see a dime the way it's run now.

[Isaac Bartram]

Actually, the pension part of SS is not in that much trouble, it's Medicare that's the time bomb.

Dispensing with the fiction that is the Social Security Trust Fund and cutting the FICA to only the level required to fund current outlays to beneficiaries would be a start.

Or, FICA could be left the same with the so-called "surplus" being directed to a personal private investment account of the taxpayers choice.

A few other changes like increasing the retirement age and either means testing or taxing benefits (with an exemption large enough to protect low income beneficiaries) would probably have to come too.

This should satisfy the liberals wish to protect impecunious elders from poverty.

One might be able to sacrifice some portions of libertarian though to come up with a workable compromise with liberals over the pension portion.

Unfortunately it is not even possible to pretend to save Medicare.

[BakedPenguin]

Sean, the elderly vampires vote. Your friends probably don't (unless they're different from their age cohort).

[simon...]

Matt, do you really think that Beck's claim about influence of progressive marxists sympathizers on policies of this administration is completely baseless? I would agree that he exaggerates and falls into hysteria, but his basic points are so true...
Do you really disagree that the road we are on now is "the road to serfdom?
Or you are turning away from Beck just because it's so offensive to your leftist friends?

[Tman]

Actually, the pension part of SS is not in that much trouble

When you compare it to Medicare, well yeah SS looks downright stable. But it isn't. And when you actually look at how bad it is, the current estimate for insolvency in the fund in 2019. And that's at the rate before Obama destroys the rest of the economy.

Interesting link with some numbers here-

http://norunnyeggs.com/2010/01.....9-edition/

The scariest stat being thus:

* All that has led to the DI Fund entering a 12-month overall (which includes the effects of "interest") deficit beginning in February 2009, which means it is redeeming more US Treasuries than it is buying. That 12-month overall deficit, which has existed since then, has now hit $10.525 billion, the first time it topped the $10 billion mark.

Allow me to repeat that ? the DI Fund is now in the final stage of a fund collapse ? the exhaustion of principal. In this case, that principal, as of November 30, 2009, was $202.265 billion.

But hey whatever. Let's give everyone free health insurance and tax businesses who use fossil fuels! That'll fix everything!